The first words of this chapter answer the scoffers and the unbelievers. The prophecy of the soon to be coming John the Baptist. The man who will bring the announcement of the coming of Christ, the Baptist preparing the way before him and calling for the repentance of the people. This is the Messiah, he who the people have been calling for and now he is coming! The Messiah, the messenger of the covenant and those who seek comfort and peace shall find it in Him. He will prepare men’s hearts to be his temple by His words and convictions of His spirit during which He becomes the Messenger of peace and consolation. What does he bring to the world at this time? No lies, predetermined forms of acceptable behavior will be unable to endure His doctrine or  stand before His justice. Christ will distinguish between the actions of men and separate them between precious and the vile.  He will be a refiner, this Christ, by His gospel, he shall purify and reform his church, and by his Spirit working with it, shall regenerate and cleanse souls. He will take away the worthless things found in them. The corruptions, which render their faculties worthless and useless will be taken away but it is noted that the believer need not fear a fiery trial of afflictions and temptations.There is an interesting note here. The trial will last no longer than needed and Christ will intercede on behalf of the wicked but it is understood that where there is no fear of God is not a good place to be. God will not reside where evil and sin prevail and pursues sinners. God is unchangeable and we should be aware that while judgement of evil works may not come quickly, it will come because God is ever the enemy to sin. We all have to deal with evil and sometimes get caught up in it. While God does not change there is compassion for those who fear the Lord and seek to change.

The Rebuke… verses 7-12

While the people of that generation have turned away from God, not kept His ordinances, still God gives them a gracious call. They ask “how shall we return”? They fail to see that they must with all their hearts call out to the Lord, seek His presence and word. But they chose to be obstinate, to use their afflictions as an excuse for their sins ignoring an earnest call to reform. They put the interests of their bodies before that of their souls, forgetting that God must be served first. God has blessings ready for us and sometimes because of our weakness of faith and narrow-minded way of putting our desires first, they pass us by.We will lose nothing of worth by honoring the Lord first.

God’s Love… verses 13-18

There were those that continued to sin tempting God with their arrogant ways and refusing to observe the limits of what is permitted or appropriate. The day will come when these proud sinners will regret their ways. Yet there are those who spoke kindly, preserving a mutual love for one another even among the sin that they encountered each day. They spoke to each other in a way that those who believed in the Lord would understand, constantly keeping Him among them and in their hearts. Communication among people is a powerful thing. When we speak evil we corrupt good minds and actions, so it is only reasonable to think that good thoughts and words encourage good actions. God remembers our actions and those that believed will not perish with those that didn’t. Those that believed in the Lord will be filled with mercy and honor and the unbelievers will be filled with only their own wrath and dishonor. God loves us and he will not let His children be raised up to be careless in their duties to Him. They must serve and do so with a love and trust which is much like that of a child. 

All of us at one time or another will need that love and sparing mercy of God…for all will sin and fall short. The inescapable truth is that some will go to heaven, some to hell. We may deceive each other as to our character but at our judgement before Christ, on that Lord’s Day, everyone’s character will be known.We should be concerned as to our place in the judgement, but we also must leave that judgement of others to God. We who trusted God will in the end be considered to be happy and wise…we who served the Lord shall rise up on that day.

We will close out this series on Malachi with the forth and finial chapter of this book. 

Judgement of The Wicked…Happiness of The Righteous

4: 1-3

For those who call upon His name and have dressed themselves in the righteous armor of faith in our Lord and savior, He will be their shield and protector. They have been justified and sanctified and shall receive the graces and comfort and joy of Jesus Christ. The light has come to their world and they will increase in knowledge and spiritual strength. The day is fixed, the references here can be taken to mean both the first and second comings of Christ. There are definite signs that on the day of the Lord there will be judgement rendered on those proud, arrogant and sinful people. That day will be a day of great joy to those who have served the Lord, a day of sunshine and glory. But woe to the wicked, for in the light of this Holy “Son shine” they will burn as if in an oven. The victory will be God’s doing, not what we have done…for He has given us a savior, His son Jesus Christ. We will rejoice greatly as believers who have been brought from darkness into the light…Praise to the Lord evermore!

The Law…John the Baptist…The Messiah

4: 4-6

To conclude this prophecy and also the Old Testament we shall allow our conscience to remind us to remember the law. But may the future shall see us blessed with our bibles, also an increase in awareness of the importance of communion with our God. While others will boast of their proud reasoning, crediting it with their enlightenment, let’s keep close the sacred word of God and through His son Jesus Christ our souls will be filled with faith, hope and joy. We must keep believing the wondrous expectation of Christ, looking forward for the very beginning of it. John the Baptist preached repentance just as Elijah had done. We must turn our hearts to God and embrace our duty and service to Him in preparation for that great and dreadful day of salvation and judgement. The Baptist will preach a doctrine that will change the peoples hearts and work a change in them, so shall the way to the kingdom of heaven be prepared. The Jewish Nation had turned from God and ruin was at their very doorstep but God sent John the Baptist to preach repentance to them. Those who will believe will wait patiently and cheerfully expect that great day when Christ shall come that second time to complete our salvation. A warning here to those who will not turn and repent. None can escape who have broken God’s law and they will be denied the joy of being God’s chosen and redeemed people unless their hearts are turned from the sins of this world…to Christ and holiness.

Here ends the lesson, so to speak. I hope you have enjoyed this series and will be back in the Pew next week.

Life is Good

jk   

The charges made here toward the Priests could well apply to us this very day. Our relationship with God requires strongly that we fear and honor Him in all aspects of our life. In these next verses God makes known through Malachi his displeasure with these Priests and the people in general. They were scornful of this rebuke and gave it no notice or respect even to the point where they seemed perplexed or bewildered by this message, even turning aside an attentive ear to what was being said. In this particular instance we are referring to the Holy ordinances which they attend to without reverence or concern. They leave such celebrations without concern for their future, their faith lacking action. Specifically speaking, their offerings are polluted and there is no reverence or fear of God, even from the Priests. These sacrifices offered make the altar contemptible and God is greatly displeased. Through Malachi Israel is commanded to call on God by praying for His grace and earnestly seeking His favor. Only God can lead them from this failure to worship Him properly and cease presenting polluted sacrifices and offerings. Even the Gentiles make acceptable offerings to God, but His own people profane His name. How so they ask? Sick stolen and lame sacrifices none of which meet the Holy Ordinances are offered in a way to deceive and demean the worship. Malachi brings to an end this chapter by plainly stating that such deceivers will be cursed. Malachi reminds the Priests and the people that God is a great King…one to be loved, honored and feared. His name is to be feared by all nations.

As we move on to chapter two we might ask ourselves if our worship is grounded in a faith that acknowledges the greatness of our God and is fed by, humility, love and our desire to honor Him in a way that others may see Him in us.

(Malachi 2:1-9) The priests reproved for neglecting their covenant.

These verses at the very beginning of this passage stress that this covenant of Priesthood is a true covenant of grace made with all believers, as spiritual priests. It is one of life and peace and assures all believers of happiness in this world and the one to come. Believers should consider it an honor to be God’s servants serving as His messengers. A priest should not keep knowledge from the people but keep it for them; not withholding but sharing. The people need to know the will of the Lord. Note, we are instructed to not only read and consult the word but we are to seek instruction and advice from those messengers of God for the maintance health of our souls. Ministers are called to work earnestly for the conversion of sinners; even among those who call themselves Israelites, for there are many of those  to be saved also. This only can be done by those ministers who preach a sound doctrine and live holy lives according to the scripture. There has been a falling away from this and people have been misled. The message here is very plain…those who walk with God in peace and righteousness and bring back those who have fallen away, such people honor God and will be honored by Him. Those who do not and despise Him shall not receive honor.

(Malachi 2:10-17) The people reproved for their evil practices.

These next verses speak to the sanctity of marriage and God’s intent for a man and a women. The messenger tells of God’s displeasure with the corruption of the marriage covenant, which He instituted. The wife is to be looked upon as a companion not as a servant. This oath of God between them is no to be trifled with. Why one women and one man? They are to come together, produce a Godly seed that will serve the Lord and live in righteousness and peace all of their days. They should strengthen their faith and spirit that they may be kept from the sins of the day. Men will rue the day they deceive themselves through sin, selfishness, disregarding the needs and welfare of others, when those needs conflict with their own passions and fancies. God does not abide in sinful behavior and these people deceive themselves. They ask where is the God of judgement? 

The Day of The Lord Will Come!

Life is Good

jk

  

Malachi was the last of the prophets, and is supposed to have prophesied B.C. 420. He reproves the priests and the people for the evil practices into which they had fallen, and invites them to repentance and reformation, with promises of the blessings to be bestowed at the coming of the Messiah. And now that prophecy was too cease, he speaks clearly of the Messiah, as nigh at hand, and directs the people of God to keep in remembrance the law of Moses, while they were in expectation of the gospel of Christ. (Matthew Henry)

This week we turn to another of those books of the Bible that don’t always get a lot reading time, this one in the Old Testament, Malachi. This book contains four chapters and a staggering total of fifty-five verses, 1781 words packed into four chapters. Malachi is the final book in the collection of the Twelve Prophets. There is a dynamic dialog between the people, the priests and the oracle contained in this book. For the purpose of simplicity an oracle is biblically speaking a message from God. Malachi is the messenger. What does the name Malachi mean? The name Malachi is a boy’s name of Hebrew origin meaning “my messenger”. He was the last of the twelve Hebrew prophets, who foretold the coming of Christ. There is the question of, is Malachi a personal name or a title? For our purposes we will view it as a person named Malachi who is the messenger of divine prophecies from God. Verse one is a superscription outside the discourse of the book itself. One last point about the name Malachi. Early Christian writings (5 Esdras) ends with “Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, who is also called a “messenger of the Lord.”

As a layman there are different mountains to climb when our interests take us into an area rich in theological reasoning. Such is the case for me and this Book of Malachi. We should all be thankful for this digital age of information and the wisdom of those scholars whose writings carry us over these mountains. Most of the information I share with you today is based on my reading of The New Interpreter’s Bible, volume 7. There are six units of discourse the first being chapter 1: 2-5.

We are greeted with the words “I have Loved you” in verse 1. This is not so much a statement of the past as it is a reassurance that whatever happens, be it accusation, judgement or promise, this divine statement of love will apply. We see the establishing of the pattern of statement, question and then response that is repeated as the book goes forth, with some slight modifications. In this first unit there is no accusation or charge of wrongdoing against the people. The writer in NIB points out that Malachi is much harsher than the Genesis version of God having chosen Jacob and not Esau. The language “but I have hated Esau” is attributed to God speaking here in Malachi. There are difficult questions asked, such as, “How have you loved us?” Difficult questions are answered in this book of Malachi.  The advantages or spiritual gifts are the result of the love freely given us by God. It is clear that all those who sin, only fear being held accountable for their sins. What hope and comforts they receive are from the mercy of the Lord, this mercy they did not merit, it was given freely. God chose his people that they may be Holy, like Him and if we love him it is because He loved us first. It is remarkable that we all are prone to undervalue the mercies of God, choosing to excuse our own offenses.

I hope you join me in the Pew next week as we have a look at some who should have known better but didn’t act so.

Life is Good

jk

Another time back when..I shared one of my favorite church signs with you Tried Christianity…Try Jesus. One author that I have read over the years is Beth Moore and the other day while doing some research for a study lesson I revisited a book written in 2004 I believe. The title of the book is Believing God and I opened the book to chapter one. Well, that is all it took because it fitted in somehow with a subject I was wanting to confront.  

It is God’s intention for all believers lives to be fruitful, if we are to succeed. That alone just by itself leads us to ask, are we living a successful Christian Life?  Theology, the study of the nature of God and our religious beliefs differ to such a degree that we (the church)  leave ourselves open to ridicule. Many church going Christians work hard to lift the church up, to support the ministry…working selfishly for something that is hardly working. To be even more blunt, our own personal belief system isn’t working. Those of us who acknowledge Jesus Christ as our Savior are blessed and have assurance of our salvation. Perhaps we would be more understanding of that salvation if we accepted the fact it is our duty while here on earth to do all we can for Christianity to succeed, here and now. My feelings, perhaps a bit hard, are that both ourselves and the church are taking a defensive stance. We are not going forth with the greatest story ever told, we have become content with just getting by. Getting by is not our Christian destiny. We are meant to be effective tools of the faith, taking the word to all people. Are we satisfied being complacent with our present efforts, or does the God we serve deserve much more? Do we live our faith or just rest comfortably in a world of indifference?

The Church has become a victim of a world content with the  status-quo mind set. Overwhelmed by the societal demands for change, driven by cultural change and political agendas. We as individuals find our faith challenged in the very basics of life itself and a Church struggling to remain relevant. It has allowed the myth of kingdom power to lull it into a false sense of beliefs while in reality it has become powerless and given up its seat at the table of public opinion. In many parts of the world the Church and Christians are held in contempt and ridicule. We who are the Church have perverted the scripture to fit agendas of the day, no longer valuing biblical theology. We want to be the best and in reality we are far from God’s best. God has made many promises to his people that allows us to be productive while living our lives here on earth.Throughout the Bible there are writings of these promises shared by the prophets and writings of the apostles. But we wander in this wilderness of uncertainty and the burden of belief  becomes heavier through our wavering faith. When we allow God’s promises to become a living motivator and reality, we have at our disposal the awesome power of God to be productive and live a life of peace and joy. When God gave the Israelites the promised land…they had to go and take it, to make it theirs. 

There are those who would take away these promises if we continue to remain complacent. We must live a life “standing on the promises”… They are our strength and hope…Matthew 11:30  “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Come out of the wilderness, “Stand on The Promises” Live a Christ like life, filled with the peace and joy of that which is promised to all who carry the burden and keep the faith.

Life is Good

jk

The power of enduring an unpleasant or difficult process or situation without giving way along with the fact that you can read story after story of people in the Bible who faced difficult times and still chose to go forward in the faith, not knowing what the outcome would be, leads us to this week’s Blog. Endurance could also be expressed by any of the following:

bearing; tolerance; sufferance;  fortitude; tenacity; patience;  acceptance;  resignation;  stoicism; stamina; staying power;  perseverance;  persistence; determination……

As you can see endurance covers a wide range of emotions but what about endurance from a Biblical point of view?…

Romans 15:4 ‘Endurance Leads To Hope’  As Christians we must endure in the faith because it strengthens our faith and seeing this it gives hope to those struggling to find the faith and those who want to believe, to have hope.

Galatians 6: 9, 10

 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

If we allow the lower side of us to prevail, so to speak, we can expect to harvest nothing but trouble. If we instead take the good way and do what’s right, God will repay, the harvest will be plentiful. We cannot expect there to be no consequences for our sins but God can and does forgive us of our sins. 

Romans 5: 3,4

 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.

The word Paul uses for fortitude in these verses means more than just endurance.  It makes a stronger statement that indicates a spirit that does not passively endure  but seeks to overcome the trials and tribulations of life. Paul makes a strong statement to close out these verses, Christian hope is not an illusion. Hope such as this is the result of the believers love of God, it is real and sustaining. Hope such as this is the result of a loving God, with an everlasting love backed by an everlasting power. There is no end to Biblical justification supporting the Power of Endurance…

1 Corinthians 10: 13

13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. 

I have always believed that life is what it is….Our faith and the God we serve provides us with the means to meet the challenges that we will face in this life. Paul knew life was a chancy business and temptation would surely come our way. The Greek word translated to temptation has a meaning pointing to more of a test and is meant to not make us fall but to test us. With God’s help we will emerge from it stronger than ever. Temptation is not unique for any individual, it comes to all of us from time to time but we must remember others have endured it and come through it. Keep in mind as we are going through it so have others and through the grace of God they have endured and conquered. For the Christian there is no temptation that God cannot provide a way out of. It is not the way of surrender or retreat. It is the way of conquest in the power and grace of God.

Revelation 3: 10

10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.

We find here in Revelations an old Jewish belief. The Jews divided time into two ages. The present age, which was totally bad and the age to come which was totally good. In-between those two would be a time of destruction and the wrath and judgement of God would come upon this world we now live in. John referred to that terrible time but we as those of the faith can be assured that when this world as we know it comes to an end, those who are faithful to Christ will still be safe in his keeping. 

The link below will give you a number of scriptures that refer to endurance in Bible readings.

https://www.openbible.info/topics/endurance

Keep the Faith, Endure…

Life is Good

jk

  

 

Christianity and Judaism and some Sufism sects of Islam, view The Image of God as being of a concept and theological doctrine. Hebrew scholars like Gaon and Philo believe the phase to be a type of  figurative language and that God has bestowed a special honor on mankind which he did not confer on the rest of creation.

In the Hebrew Bible the phrase “image of God” is found in three passages, all in the Book of Genesis. 1: 26-28; 5: 1-3; 9: 6.                 

Consciousness, the fact of awareness by the mind of itself and the world, add to that the ability to speak, both make mankind different from animals. We are able to think and reason, also not all of our actions are just instinctual. Man as an image of God Lost some of its luster with the fall of man in The Garden of Eden and it is  because of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross that man will once again be redeemed in the Creator’s eyes. All Christian writers agree that each person has value not to be limited by class, race, gender or disability. There are many interpretations as to the exact meaning of this phrase but it can be argued to be a concept that is the foundational doctrine of Christianity and Judaism. From the Christian standpoint we must be aware that we, being a part of the creation, are intended to be part of His plans and purposes for His creation. Imago Dei has within it the fact that if humans are to love God, then they must love other humans that God has created. All of creation is an expression of God.

John 13:35

35 ‘By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another’

God is the maker not the made. He made us in such a way that we long for Him and His presence in our lives. 

Acts 17:28

28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being…….’ 

There is a need to live as a person in the state of Imago Dei,one who understands and strives to emulate Christ’s life and teachings, to live in his image. Image and likeness are two different words that simply reinforce each others meaning. So much has been written about this Image of God…and from so many different perspectives that as a layman I can sometimes become lost in a mass of words generated by the theological and scholarly world, that I revert back to simpler times and the comfort of what I have been taught in church. So here is what I believe to be true. We know that Jesus Christ is The Image of God. What does it mean to be conformed to the image of God?

–The thoughts, words, and actions that Jesus displayed in His life and ministry serve as a model for how we glorify God in our lives. … This is what it means to be conformed to His image.

-We show God’s mercy and grace to all people at all times

-Our love for all creation is unconditional

-God wants His people to expect only the best for others and in our actions present to the world good exceptions of things to come

-Take to the world God’s will for justice

The Image of God is one of mercy, love, hope and the salvation of us all through His son Jesus Christ. I guess we could best sum this up by understanding that the image and likeness of God we seek will be found in the life of Christ…As we wrote earlier image and likeness while different words are the same but I would refer to likeness as a spiritual attribute of the moral qualities Of God. It is worth repeating…The Imago Dei can be found in the life of Christ. May we all strive to live a Christ like life,

Life is Good 

jk

 

 

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father who is ever compassionate and the God who sends all comfort, he who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we are able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction’….  (2 Corinthians 1: 2-4)

When Paul wrote this he was writing as someone who knew trouble and if anyone knew trouble it would be Paul. His life up to this point had been a series of challenges, many placing him square in the eye of trouble. Now he shares that experience of God given endurance with those who find themselves in trouble.  Those who sought to become Christians in Paul’s day, chose to face trouble. It would not be uncommon that they found themselves abandoned by family, friends or their pagan neighbors, even at times experience persecution from official powers. Sound falmilar….Could easily be applied to some people today and Churches…most any Christian out reach program. William Barclay notes “It is always costly to be a real Christian, for Christianity is not true Christianity without the cross.” One of the key points of comfort is that we are able to endure. The Greek word does not signify a grim, bleak acceptance of trouble but one that leads to triumph. Christians are able to endure because the Spirit enables us to just not accept suffering but to triumph over it. Difficulties strengthen our faith and in most instances we emerge much stronger and better disciplined in the faith.

In 2Corinthians 1: 3-7  the word comfort as a noun or verb appears nine times. Its root lies in the Latin fortis which means brave. Christian comfort brings with it the courage to cope with all the things life can do to us. It was Paul’s belief that God surely would never seek to comfort us without enabling us with the strength and courage needed to receive and accept such a gift. We must remember that to suffer for Christ is a privilege. The big takeaway from all this is that our comfort from the bad things of life, enables us to comfort others who are suffering. 

Hebrews 2: 18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.  

Comfort is God given and the Comfort  we receive during our suffering and sorrow will help us to comfort others in theirs.

Life is Good

jk

For many the state of our country and if truth be told, the state the world in general, is one that leads some to believe the future seems hopeless. I am not referring to the politics of the day, it is a situation of “the world is ok…I just don’t like the people in it”. God did not create us to be solitary creatures devoid of any contact with  people and things around us. Relationships matter, interaction among all people is important. The attitudes and the discord of the day marginalize our ability to take the gospel to others. For many Christians this can be a time of hopelessness. We need the assurances of others of the faith to strengthen us and we need to share with others, we need to be doing the work of the kingdom. With this in mind I return to 1 Peter this week, Chapter 1: 1-9.

Peter brings hope to us  of the faith in the first two verses of this chapter. These people, the Gentiles had no hope, they lived a very futile life. Now the conceptions of those who lived outside the mercy of God no longer applies to them. They had become believers, they are now a part of the family of God, hope, mercy and salvation are now theirs through the cross and the blood of Jesus Christ. This applies to you and I this very day and all the privileges that once belonged to Israel now belong to us and the Christian Church. There is a point to be made here. During the Diaspora the Jews were scattered to all the countries outside of Palestine. During these times of trouble they were forcibly deported from their native lands, thus they were different from other people and treated as such. Now things are different and the ones who are different are the Christians. We are in a sense exiles in the world, for our home is in eternity, with our God. This world for the most part is hostile to us and our God and faith. The uplifting thing here is we are now a part of the Family of God. Of course there comes with that honor a challenge and serious responsibility. He honors us by choosing us to be a part of His purposes for his creations. We are the exiles of eternity. We are not expected to withdraw from the world but it is our responsibility to remain apart from the sins and temptations of this world.

Christians, when we pray… ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ’ we are praying to the God who is like Jesus Christ. It is through Jesus Christ that we have come to know our God and in whom we put our trust, faith and confidence. We have been reborn into a new life. The changes in our lives should be so great that the only explanation could be a re-birth, fueled by God and the Holy Spirit. We have asked that the Holy Spirit possess and re-create us. It is one of our responsibilities as children of God to ensure that the word of truth prevails in this world and among all the people. We are the first fruits of a new creation. We have been lifted from this world of sin and defeat. We are now in touch and aware of this promise of eternity and salvation. We have been reborn into a state of living hope. Righteousness is reborn and should we fall, we have in us now the power and grace of God to rise again. We are free to love all people because the power of unforgiving bitterness and self-centered attitudes has been replaced with the sacrificial love of God. We have learned how to have a victorious life in living and serving Jesus Christ. The points of hope for Christians are many. There is the hope that is now a reality, the great inheritance….that word inheritance means something we will possess in the future. To the born again, those in the faith it means something different. Biblical meaning is a secure possession now, for all God’s children, repeat all God’s family. We belong to and serve God and because of this, The Inheritance, will endure forever. As we make our way through this world we are protected by the power of God.

Peter lays before them the fact that their Christianity will bring upon them certain persecution and at times agonizing experiences. Endurance…rejoice! But you can stand anything brought against you. At the end there will be the inheritance, every trial is a test but there will God’s Grace to strengthen our endurance. There is the undeniable truth that at the end Jesus Christ will appear and we will hear that wondrous ‘well done’.

 Don’t give up hope, never surrender to the evil of unbelief, keep the faith.

1 John 3  

3 

1 See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he[a] is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. 3 And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

As the hymn has it: 

Jesus, these eyes have never seen That radiant form of thine; 

The veil of sense hangs dark between Thy blessed face and mine. 

I see thee not, I hear thee not, Yet art thou oft with me; 

And earth hath ne’er so dear a spot As where I meet with thee. 

Yet, though I have not seen, and still Must rest in faith alone, 

I love thee, dearest Lord, and will, Unseen but not unknown. 

When death these mortal eyes shall seal, And still this throbbing heart, 

The rending veil shall thee reveal All glorious as thou art. 

Thanks for joining us in the Pew

Life is Good

jk

 

Mark 1:14–15 

After John had been committed to prison, Jesus came into Galilee, announcing the good news about God, and saying, ‘The time that was appointed has come; and the kingdom of God is here. Repent and believe the good news.’ 

I can think of no better time for a little Good News. There is plenty of bad news to go around…the world and back. In the book of Mark we are reminded that there is some good news to be shared.Two simple verses, if I counted right, 39 words. Dominant in these verses are The Good News, Repentance and the word believe.

Let’s start with the Good News. This being the news that Jesus brings to all of us. What is the content of this message that Jesus brings to all of us? It is the good news of truth. Before Jesus we had no ability to see and to know. Job cries out…‘O that I knew where I might find him,’ (Job 23: 3) The Good News being those falmilar words ‘I can see clearly now’. With the coming of Jesus we can see clearly who God is. We no longer have to guess or wonder, now we know. It’s the good news of hope. The ancient world always looked to see the worst, a doom and gloom attitude, despondent and depressed. The coming of Jesus brought hope to the hopeless and today that hope abounds in the heart of the believers. It is the good news of Peace… Ephesians 6: 15

 15 As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace.

As mortals, sin and goodness are always fighting a battle for our souls. The coming of Jesus brings together the waring factions of the mind and body and we find victory as our warring within is conquered by Jesus Christ.

It is the good news of God’s Promise. Ephesians 3: 6

6 that is, the Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

Those not of the faith tend to believe God to be a demanding God. Christianity tells of a God who is willing to give more than we could ever ask.

It is good news of immortality… 2 Timothy 1:10

 10 but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 

To the pagan you are born to die and life was the road that got you there. Jesus brought the good news that we are on the way to life, not death. 

It is good news of salvation…Ephesians 1:13

13 In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit

Salvation is a positive thing in that it is not just liberation from past sin, it gives us the power to conquer sin. We are left with two more words. 

There is the word repent,  a word I feel is often misunderstood. In Greek the word means change of mind. Yes, sin can make us sorry for what we have done but often leaves us more concerned with the consequences and the sorrow  brings. Truth is most people would do it again if they thought they could escape the consequences. As Christians we must understand that to repent means to change our actions, the way we live. We must learn to hate sin. 

There is the word believe. Believe in the Good News!  We can believe that God is the kind of God Jesus has told us about. This is the one time that something is to good to be true…is true! Have faith, believe the Good News, God loves you and will make any sacrifice to bring you back to him.

Life is Good

jk

We of the community of faith, the Christian community throughout the world have our faith tested each day in the trials and tribulation of any given day. But we do have one blessing that is constant, that being our God and his unfailing love and mercy for us, His children. He is the one living God, our salvation and hope. The Song of Moses speaks to just that.

The debate about one God or many is found throughout the Old Testament. It travels within abstract debate, theories and speculations. These give rise to the question of a single, all powerful divine God that will control the universe. In The Song of Moses, the sovereignty of the Lord God of Israel is majestically put forth. The question of other gods, demons, idols and no gods become irrelevant. Also there is our introduction the theological impact of monotheism… God is one and there is no other who is comparable in power or purpose. There is an interesting paradox here in that this song does not declare a monotheistic faith, as it does often refer to other deities besides the Lord God of Israel. The primary insertion of different deities that Israel was repeatedly tempted to worship were the gods of the former occupants of the land. The point being made in this song is that these other gods are weak and powerless beside the God of Israel and must submit to the will of the Lord. It should be recognized that if other nations or peoples believe in or accept that their gods exist, for them it is so. One point of this song is to emphasize the absolute power of the Lord. Moses sets out to show the power of the Lord in all the history of Israel. Things sometimes went bad for the people because it was necessary they be punished, by the same token when things went good it was God showing his mercy to the people. In verse 32:27 other nations wrongly assumed that their gods were greater, more powerful than the Lord God of Israel. The song sets it straight, there are no gods greater than the Lord God of Israel. A minor theme is that each nation has its own deity, each looking to be more important than someone or something else. Scripture teaches us that only that which is divine has the power to create. None of the other gods have that power, being  limited only to their appearances and the misplaced faith of their followers. 

 We all have over time had a moment in which we pondered why does God let bad things happen? We can’t help but look at our situation today. There is no respect for others as to age, gender, faith, in general no tolerance for that which is different. Why has God let this happen? The song’s answer for the Israelites is that in time this will pass. Many of us this day have a lessening in faith that God is in control. Israel had to accept the fact that the divine will with the uprightness and loyalty of God’s children, along with the belief that Israel’s enemies were God’s enemies also and would be punished in His Time. To wrap this up it is best said that for us to maintain a sense of oneness and wholeness of our history and life experiences and the oneness of God is far better than being distracted by the rivalries between many different gods and their causes. There is only one God…. He and only Him is in control.

What is your song? To whom do you look? 

Life is Good

jk